Low Fidelity Turned On High
by The Killing Question
Summary: Rayne just died, and she regrets quite a bit of the things that happened before she did. She gets a second chance to make amends with those she hurt. What happens when a certain red-head confesses his feelings for her? Currently Discontinued. BEING POTENTIALLY REWRITTEN AND CONTINUED.
1. So This Is What It's Like To Die

_**Low Fidelity Turned On High**_

**Chapter One – So This Is What It's Like To Die**

_**I can't seem to function, from this far away.  
And every little moment looks so dull,  
without your color in my day.**_

**_Oh it feels so good to hear you speak._**

**_This is where I start to miss you, more than I can bare.  
I hate this distance in between us; I don't think it's fair._**

_**-'Low Fidelity' by The Spill Canvas  
**_

_There was an ethereal setting around me. Flowers everywhere, of every color possibly imaginable, filling the place with a calming and gentle aroma. A clear sky, such a light and delicate shade of blue that looked like it could break and dissolve to nothingness if I reached up and managed to touch it. But there was no sun, just a soft light that filled the soul with warmth and seemed to blur any flaws this place may have. And I was lying in the middle of it all, surrounded by the peaceful beauty of something that couldn't possibly be real._

_After a long while, I sighed and sat up, legs crossed. "Well," I sighed again and looked up at the flawless sky, "This sucks."_

_I felt someone leaning against my back with a since of familiarity. They chuckled and a playful male voice asked, "Didn't plan on dying today, huh?"_

_I felt a smile spread on my face, "Not really." I leaned back against him like we used to do all the time._

"_What happened?" He asked with a laugh, "Don't tell me you got bested by a monster."_

"_No!" I denied immediately. There was a long pause before I admitted, "It was a horde of them."_

"_Seriously?" He laughed._

"_It's not funny!" I barked. "It didn't register in my head how much damage I had taken until they were all dead and I couldn't understand why my body wasn't listening."_

"_Yeah? That does suck," He mused._

"_Quit laughing at my death, Zack Fair!" I yelled. It was silent before we both started laughing. "We can't all die heroically like you."_

"_What can you do?" I felt him shrug his shoulders. Then he asked, "What did you do from there?"_

"_I think I managed to call someone but I blacked out before they answered," I replied._

"_Yep," I could hear the grin in his voice, "You know who you called?"_

_I rolled my eyes, "No, but I'm sure you do."_

"_Yeah," He nudged me, "You called Cloud."_

_I groaned, "No wonder I'm dead."_

"_Hey!" Zack called, "Don't talk like that! Cloud found your body and put it to rest."_

"_Really?" I was surprised._

"_You two may have argued all the time, but you where still his friend." He stated, and then added, "You two really are twins, you know."_

_I nodded, "Yeah, I know. I'm sure he does too; we just never admitted it to ourselves. So I guess he put my body to rest beside Aerith?"_

"_Yes," I heard a light feminine voice call. She sat beside us, the three of us making a triangle and none of us facing each other._

"_Hey, Aerith," I smiled again._

"_Hello, Rayne," She replied._

"_Everyone misses you," I said, "Both of you."_

"_We know," They chimed._

_It was silent for a while. "I miss them." I mumbled. "I never got to fix anything."_

"_What do you mean?" Aerith asked._

"_The whole reason I was off on my own was because I started some stupid argument with Cloud. I ran off and never got to apologize. And I said some horrible things to Vincent I never said sorry for. And Yuffie…" I burst into tears, crying into my hands, "God! I deserve to be dead!" I was sobbing, "They all must hate me…I don't deserve to have my body rest by yours, Aerith!"_

_Though I couldn't see it, the two behind me glanced at each other, and then Zack said, "Maybe you should go back then."_

"_What?" I asked, shocked. "I'm dead; I can't go back, can I?"_

"_Let me explain," Aerith said lightly, "This place, it's not part of the Lifestream. The Lifestream is a place for the children of Gaia that have found peace in their death. This place is for those of us that still have something to do but can't really do it with a body."_

"_I'm still confused. How does that mean I can go back?"_

"_She's saying you don't belong here or in the Lifestream-"_

"_Zack," Aerith scolded._

_I felt Zack shrug, "Well, it's true. In order to do what you need to, you need to be on Gaia. So you're going back."_

"_Does that mean once I've made amends with everyone I die again?"_

"_Not exactly," the woman replied, "We all have a path to follow."_

"_Yours obviously still has a long way to go," Zack explained._

"_So, I get to live again." I sighed. I didn't realize how much that meant to me. "I promise, I'm going to be a better person. I don't want to die with regrets again."_

"_Sounds good to me," Zack chimed, "What do you think?"_

"_I like it," I could hear the smile in the kind woman's voice._

_I nudged them, "Any kind of message you two want me to pass on."_

"_Yeah," Zack called, "Say…"_

_Then the two called together, "It's about time."_

_I blinked, "And who am I suppose to tell?"_

"_You'll know when you see them," The woman said._

"_Wait, what do you-"_

I felt some sort of weight on my stomach and it was squirming, almost like it couldn't keep its balance. My eyes snapped open when I felt two small hands on my breasts. I was shocked to see a toddler sitting on top of me staring at me with great focus, holding onto my chest for balance. The dark tuff of hair on his head was frizzed out around his face and his bright blue-green eyes stared deeply into my own.

Softly, as not to scare the small child, I asked, "What's your name?"

He looked like he was trying to understand my question. After a moment he said, "Zack."

_What the hell?_ I thought, _Is this Zack Fair reincarnated? He looks just like him!_ Then, out of curiosity, I asked, "Do you know who I am?"

Again, there was that look of trying to comprehend. Then he shook his head but said, "You look like Daddy." I stared at the small child in disbelief. Then it dawned on me that my surrounding where shockingly similar to the upstairs of the Seventh Heaven.

"Can you take me to your Daddy?" I asked quietly. The toddler nodded and climbed off me, sticking a rather uncomfortable knee into my stomach. He eased himself off the bed and waddled to the door, still ajar from when he came in I was sure. I followed him to the stairs and watch him ease down them, using the wall for support, with a smile.

I followed him down but stayed in the shadows as I watched the little boy named Zack call, "Daddy!" running across the floor. Though he called for his father he ran to a dark haired woman I remembered as Tifa who sat on one of the bar stools.

She picked him up and sat him in her lap, bouncing him lightly, as said, "What is it, squirt?"

The small boy put his hands on the bar, looking at a man with spiky blonde hair and eyes that matched the boy's, "Daddy! Lady looks like you!" He jabbed a finger in my direction and I smiled at his lack of a whole sentence.

Cloud's face contorted into confusion at his son but widened when his head snapped up to see me walking across the floor towards them. "Zack," He said, eyes never leaving mine, "Go play with Marlene and Denzel."

The little boy climbed off Tifa, who I assumed was his mother, and waddled back up the stairs. I watched the toddler climb the mountain of stairs then turned back to the pair with a grin, "So, what? I have to die before you two finally get together?"

The two stared at me as if they couldn't comprehend me standing in front of them. Cloud walked around to the side of the bar that Tifa was on to comfort her as she had started to cry. "You…" He began then stopped, unsure of how to progress. "You called me…but when I answered you didn't say anything. Then…" He stopped again, looking as if he couldn't believe something. "It sounded like Zack...he told me where you were then the line went dead."

I smiled, _Thanks for looking out for me, Zack._

"When I got there…it looked like a war field…"

"And then you took my body and laid it to rest by Aerith in the City of the Ancients," I finished, not being one for long stories.

"How did you-"

I cut him off though, "Zack and Aerith say 'It's about time', by the way. I'm guessing they meant you finally getting together with someone."

He seemed dumbstruck for a moment, and then he smiled lightly, "That sounds like them."

Finally, Tifa gave up trying to contain herself and jumped up and nearly broke my neck with the power of her embrace. "How Dare You Be Gone For So Long and Not Call Me!" She cried, "And Then You Go and Die!" She sobbed, "I won't forgive you."

I smiled, "I'm sorry, Tifa. I am."

"It's okay," She cried again and finally released me.

"What happened to not forgiving me?" I asked rubbing my neck.

She wiped her wet face, "I can't hold a grudge like that against my friends."

I smiled then I became serious which seemed to startle the woman, "Can I talk to Cloud?"

She nodded and went upstairs, shooing away the kids she found eavesdropping but I was sure she was listening too.

I turned to the blonde before me and sighed, taking a seat at the table beside him. "When I was talking to Zack and Aerith I realized I did a lot of screwing up before I died. I don't want to have regrets like that when I die again. You know, I spent so long being angry at you I forgot what I was mad about. I didn't even realize that you and Tifa had gotten together. And then I miss my nephew being born. How much of his life have I missed?"

Cloud leaned on the wall, crossed his arms, and looked away, "A year and a half."

I smacked my head on the table, "God, I'm horrible." It was silent for a moment. "I want to apologize for everything, but I don't think I know how. I don't want it to be just because I don't want regrets either, that would only make myself feel better. I know I have a long way to go," I looked up at Cloud, "But would you help me?"

Cloud turned to look at me. I'm not sure what he saw in my face, but he nodded. Then he pulled something out of his pocket and threw it to me. I caught it and looked at the cell phone in my hand. It was mine. I looked up at him, "Did you know I was going to come back?"He shook his head. "Then why were you holding on to it?"

He looked away again and shrugged, "It's yours."

I smiled. _He was keeping as a memento. _I couldn't contain myself. I jumped up and hugged him. He seemed startled and unsure of what to do. I figured the only person he was really touchy with at all was Tifa so it surprised me when he wrapped an arm around me. Only one, but still.

We broke apart when we heard, "No, Zack, come back here." Then the toddler came down the stairs smiling at his father, and Tifa chasing after him. "Heh, sorry?" She offered.

I picked up little Zack and held him on my hip, smiling at him. He looked between me and Cloud then grabbed a lock of both our hair and pulled them together, looking at the identical color. "Still in the hair pulling phase," Cloud explained.

"Strong like his parents," I retorted with a wince.

Cloud pulled away and took the toddler, saying gently, "Don't pull hair, Zack."

"Kay," He replied in that way that said he wouldn't remember. Then he looked at me again then back to Cloud, "Who lady?"

"Your Aunt Rayne," He replied.

He looked at me again and grabbed my hair…again, but didn't exactly pull. Then he smiled and said, "Aunt Wayne?"

I smiled with a sweat drop and ruffled his hair, "That's me, kiddo." He laughed, my smile grew, and it looked like Cloud was brandishing a smile of his own.

Then the door opened and a mopey looking Yuffie with puffy eyes walked into the bar. She stopped mid step when she saw me. It was like everything but Zack froze. And then she screamed. I thought she was going to break my neck too when she hugged me. No, I thought she was going to break much more than my neck when she started slinging me around. Zack had started crying and Tifa took him upstairs.

"If ya don't let the lass go she might die again," I recognized the animatron's accent and vaguely wondered why Cait Sith was there through my torture.

"Rayne-Rayne-Rayne-Rayne-Rayne-Rayne…" Yuffie started chanting once she released me. It confused me but I suppose it was just her way of understanding I wasn't dead.

"Damn kid just won't die, will ya?" Cid called. I always liked Cid. I never liked the disgusting country accent but on him it seemed more rugged, not country. I turned and he was grinning at me, his nasty cigarette in his mouth.

"I have friends in high places," I replied and winked at Cloud. He just seemed to smirk slightly and shake his head.

"Glad your back," He jabbed a thumb in the general direction of everyone, "Been 'bout as fun as a tar pit when you were gone."

"Glad to know I was missed," I laughed. "Really…it is…" _I figured everyone would hate me after all the shit I've done._ I brushed my own spiky, less spiky than Clouds but spiky none the less, blonde hair out of my face. "Hey, just a question but, ah, can I have some food?"Everyone seemed to laugh, even Cloud chuckled a bit. "No, really, I'm starving."

"Oh," Tifa ran to the kitchen and I followed quickly after her. "So," She started as she began making me something, "How do you feel?"

"Other than having my stomach eat itself?" I asked. She chuckled and I said, "Well…I donno. I feel the same really. I mean, I don't think I have any scars anymore, new body and all, unless you count mental scars. Still have plenty of those."

Tifa laughed again, "Well, that's good, if you think about it. If you still have your mental wounds, it might help to keep you from ending up with your old physical wounds."

I stared at her a moment. She looked at me when I didn't respond only to see me bowing repeatedly saying, "Yes, oh great and wise Tifa!"

She laughed and abandoned my food temporarily to hug me, "I really missed you, Rayne."

"How long was I gone?" I asked when she went back to working on my food.

"About two months," She replied somberly.

"WHAT?!" I cried, "I Only Talked to Those Two for an Hour and It Cost Me Two Months?" I sighed, "Well, at least I still have the rest of my life now. I guess it was worth losing a few months."

"Why did you come back anyway?" Tifa asked.

I shrugged, "Zack said it was because I still had something to do and I needed my body to do it."

"Really?"

"Yeah. He and Aerith still have something to do too, but Aerith said they couldn't do it with their bodies so they're in a sort of purgatorial kind of place until their business is done," I added.

"What happens to them then?" I heard a twinge of sadness in her voice.

"They return to the planet I guess," I smiled, "I think what they still have to do is watch over us."

"I think so too," Tifa turned and gave me a smile. "If that's what it's like to die, to be able to still watch over those you care about until you know they're okay on their own, I don't think I'll mind so much when my time comes."

"Me either," I laughed, "Let's just hope our time isn't for a while."

The two of us laughed and talked, Yuffie joining in on the fun. It was like Tifa had called everyone over for some unknown reason until they all saw me. Rude and Reeve came, apparently Reno had some work to catch up on, so did Barret, Red XVII did too. We laughed, talked, had fun, and danced; everything. Even the kids got in on the fun, Zack hardly ever leaving my side. I was never more thankful for being alive.

_**I can't seem to operate from this far away.  
There's a million little voices tellin' me  
I should have stayed.**_

**_Oh it feels so good to hear you speak._**

**_This is where I start to miss you, more than I can bear.  
I hate this distance in between us; I don't think it's fair._**

_**-'Low Fidelity' by The Spill Canvas**_


	2. The Looks Of An Unlikely Friendship

**Chapter Two – The Looks Of An Unlikely Friendship**

_**You're like a black cat with a black back pack full of fireworks  
You're gonna burn the city down right now  
Whoa whoa**_

_**-'Black Cat' by Mayday Parade  
**_

I woke completely unable to move. On one side of me I realized was Yuffie with an iron clasp on me, no way was she letting me disappear without her knowing. On the other side of me was a grip I could easily escape from, but the site of little Zack curled up on my arm out like a light was more than I could bear to wake.

After about an hour of Yuffie drooling in my ear, Zack finally woke up with a little yawn. Those mystifying eyes that we shared stared at me a moment then he started giggling. I didn't know why, but then again, he was at that age that anything would be funny. He only laughed more when Yuffie rolled over with me still in her grips and we both fell off the side of the bed.

"Hey! What's the big idea?" She cried, rubbing her head, that having hit the floor first.

Tifa and Cloud rushed into the room, thinking something had happened to their son. "You drug me off the bed. Your one hel-…Heck of a klutz for a ninja." I sweat dropped, I barely caught myself. I'd have to watch my mouth a lot more now that Zack was always glued to me.

"Nice save," Yuffie taunted. I responded by smacking her in the head with one of the pillows that fell with us.

I stood and shook my hair out; it fell in place without the use of a brush. Zack was whining for me to pick him up so I put him on my shoulders and followed Tifa and Cloud down stairs where Denzel and Marlene were already eating breakfast. Tifa grabbed the bundle off my shoulders and 'flew' him around the room when he began to protest, then took him to feed him.

I stretched then moved to the side when Yuffie came barreling down the stairs in an attempt to tackle me, landing in a heap on the floor. "How did you know?" She barked.

"I was in SOLDIER just like Cloud," I explained, "That where we met after all."

"What?" She asked. "But you two-"

"Twins, I know," I said, "Neither of us really know what happened. I just know that Zack Fair was the person that introduced us. By the way, Cloud," I said turning to him as he leaned against the bar. His head snapped up at the mention of his name as if he was about to fall asleep, "Nice name for the fruit of your loins," His face tinted pink. "He looks just like him."

"Yeah," He mumbled.

I saw him turn even redder when Marlene turned to Denzel and asked in a whisper, "What does she mean by 'fruit of your loins'?" Yuffie and I just laughed.

Tifa came back out of the kitchen with Zack on her hip, trying to get him to use a Sippy-cup. "He's just as stubborn as his father," She muttered to herself.

"Then do what you usually would with Cloud," She and Cloud both raised an eyebrow at me, "Wait it out, he'll get use to the idea eventually. Right?" I winked at Cloud. He seemed to pout and look away. I sighed, "Anyway, thanks for letting me stay the night. I'm going to head home now."

"Rayne," Cloud called as I reached for the door, "It was sold."

I turned around slowly in confusion, "Who…I was only gone for two months!"

"We didn't think you would be coming back," He retorted, "You can't blame us."

"You _can_ blame Rufus ShinRa for selling all you things though," Tifa huffed, "It was on ShinRa owned land-"

"I know that! What gives that bastard the right?" I cried. Then I looked at Zack, "Don't say that word." He gave me a confused look. "My things should have gone to my closest living relative!" Then I stormed out of the bar. Yuffie chased after me but I didn't pay any attention to her. _Ass! Let's see how he likes a violent haunting from the supposed dead._

"Please wait, Rayne!" Yuffie cried and jumped in front of me. "We can get you new things," She explained, "There's no reason to start something with ShinRa."

I glared at her for a moment then huffed a sigh, "Whatever," I spouted.

"ShinRa did give the money to Cloud though," She said. "We can get the money and go get new stuff. What do you say?"

I sighed, "Fine."

Yuffie squealed and drug me back to the bar. "Cloud!" She called. After getting the gil, she grabbed my arm and ran out the door. Realization hit me and I clawed at the door frame silently crying for help; Tifa wasn't coming with us. It was just me and Yuffie. The ninja finally pulled me away, I was sure I left claw marks on the door frame in my desperate and failed attempt of being saved from the horror to come.

"Clothes first!" Yuffie exclaimed, pulling me into a shop that I surprisingly liked. The clothes in the store where more like clothes for battle or something. I ended up getting quite a bit from that store. Then to my horror, the ninja pulled me into a very girly clothing store. By girly, I meant frills, evening gowns, high heels, etc. I didn't get much, just the three of the uncountable number of evening gowns that I was forced into because I apparently looked 'too amazing not too get them.' Then we found some pajamas and I wasn't sure but I think Yuffie managed to buy me launderette without me seeing. I'm pretty sure she did it again when I got underwear, finding 'naughty' things for me.

As we walked through town looking for other stores to, as Yuffie put it, 'ransack' I noticed once store. It was like the window was a vacuum that sucked my face to it. My eyes sparkled as I stared down at the sharp pointy objects on the other side of the window. Yuffie looked through the window too. Then the next thing I knew she was on the other side of the glass. I walked into the store too. She was looking at some ninja tool I didn't care to look at. _I,_ on the other hand, was looking at swords and almost drooling over what I saw.

Then Yuffie's shrill voice broke my daydreaming as she called, "Vinny!" My heart sunk into my stomach. I turned and sure enough, Vincent Valentine was over by the guns a hint of displeasure on his face as Yuffie bounced beside him.

_You're like a tonberry, Vincent, you have that light that draws people towards you, and then you stab them with harsh words and drive them away. You think you're the only one that suffers with their past? Look at Cloud! Look at Barret! Even Yuffie has things that haunt her! You're no more special in your pain than anyone else, so stop thinking you are! I'm sick of hearing you gripe about 'failing Lucrecia'! She's gone, get the hell over it._

I flinched at the words I said that day. I remember that was the day Cloud and I had that argument. I was in a bad mood and Vincent was just trying to talk me out of running off. I snapped and said such terrible things to him.

"Rayne!" Yuffie called and I stiffened. She pulled me over to Vincent, "Look, Vinny, She's not dead! She came back to us!"

I couldn't bring myself to look at him, I was so ashamed. _This is where it starts though,_ I heard a voice other than my own say; _this is where you start forging your new path, Sara._ I wasn't sure, but it sounded almost like Aerith. "Yuffie," I said quietly, "Could you give us a moment?"

"Wh~y?" She asked slyly.

I gave her a serious look, "Yuffie."

"Uh…Sure, I'll be over there," She said and walked off once she saw I wasn't kidding around.

"Vincent…" I had no idea what to say to him. Nothing I could say could possibly make him hate me less. "I…" I sighed, staring at his feet, "I really don't know what to say. I screwed up doesn't seem like a viable excuse."

"It isn't," His voice was deep and cold.

I closed my eyes, "I know. I was angry…I was being illogical…but that doesn't give reason for the things I said to you. I didn't have any right in the world to say those things. You have every reason to never forgive me, and I'm okay with that. I just wanted to let you know I couldn't feel worse about what happened."

I finally chanced a look at his face. It was hard and stoic like usual but his eyes weren't has harsh as I thought they would be. "You're not lying."

"Are you sure?" I laughed darkly and looked away.

"If you were, you would not have avoided eye contact as long as you had," He replied.

"I guess," I looked at the guns in the case we were standing by, "Or because I was afraid you'd see through the ruse if I made eye contact."

"Do you want me to believe that you are lying?" He asked.

"No, just saying the things your thinking," I glanced at him again, "I know you are. Whether I'm lying or not is for you to decide." I turned to go back to the swords then stopped and pointed to one gun, "I like that one." Then I walked away. He knew I didn't like guns; everyone did, so I hope he took it to heart that I said I liked one.

I grimaced when Yuffie started asking what we had talked about. "Just…trying to patch up old wounds," I replied. Then I found a sword that seemed to cry for me pick it up. An abnormally long hilt, about as long as the blade that protruded from it. The hilt looked old, with a green tint to the hard stone that had vines of ivy carved into it. I couldn't help myself as I called through the entire store, "Excuse Me! I Want To Look At This Thing!"

The manager opened the case and handed me the sword. It felt misbalanced, too much weight in the hilt. The manager noticed my displeased look and too the blade, gave it a slight jerk and another blade shot out the bottom of the hilt. I drooled, _Double Edged Sword._ I took the blade and tested it with a few moves, getting a feel for the weapon. The blood raged through my veins, "I want it."

I was giddy as hell as manager handed the sword in its sheath over the counter. The second blade was in concealment and the other was in its sleeve. It strapped to my back which I didn't like too much but I would deal with it. It made me feel more like Cloud's twin when I had it strapped on.

As we were leaving, Yuffie called, "Bye, Vinny!" I looked back to him and noticed him nodding to us but to my surprise, he was looking at the gun I commented on. I smiled, maybe I _could_ apologize for all the crap I was waist deep in.

"What's that?" I asked as we walked down the street.

"What?" She asked as if I had accused her. Strapped to her leg was what looked like a dagger. "I wanted it."

"But are you going to use it?" I asked, "You're more the 'artillery' kind of girl."

"So? I can change!" She barked.

"Yeah, and you'll also go around Edge giving everyone you see materia," I laughed.

"Maybe I Will!" She yelled.

"Hey…what's that?" I asked suddenly serious.

"What?" She asked.

"That thing in the ally," I said. "It looked like materia and fur."

"Ha-ha," Yuffie mocked, "Materia doesn't have fur; I'm not falling for it."

"I know materia doesn't have fur," I shot back, "I think it was a cat or something that _had_ materia."

"What?" She barked and ran into the ally screaming, "Get Back Here You Mangy Cat! Give Me That Materia!"

Everyone in the area was staring at me and the girl that just disappeared into the ally, but I couldn't contain myself. I burst into hysteric laughter, falling to the ground with tears in my eyes that it had worked. "You Dirty Liar!" Yuffie screamed at me when she came back to the sidewalk, "There Wasn't Even a Cat!" I only laughed harder.

When I finally calmed down we continued back to Seventh Heaven, Yuffie pouting at my trick most of the way there. I was in a much better mood than I had been in when I first left the bar. Before we went in though, I stopped Yuffie.

"Yuffie, I…uh…" I wasn't sure how to ask her, "Could…um…you think I could stay with you tonight? I don't want to intrude on Cloud and Tifa's whole 'happy family' scene."

She stared at me for a while and I was sure she would say no. "Of Course, Rayne!" She chimed, "It'll be like a slumber party."

"Thanks, and I'm sorry about how I always use to yell at you."

"Oh, it's nothing, I get yelled at by everyone," She laughed.

"Yeah, but I have a lot I need to apologize for. I just hope I can fix all the friendship's I broke," I replied.

"Well, I'll always be your friend," She smiled in triumph, "And The Great Ninja Yuffie never goes back on her word! Unless it's something juicy."

I laughed, "Remind me never to tell you if I like a guy."

"Do you?" Yuffie grinned, "Is it Vinny? Is it Cloud? Ew, he's your brother! Oh! Is it Cid? He's kinda old and he smokes all the time! Or maybe you like the bad guys? Like Sephiroth! He's really bad! But he's dead. What about the insect guy? Kadaj? He's dead too and so are the other two. That one was kinda ugly though and the other one looked like a girl. Or Do You Like That Heartbreaker Reno? I don't trust him with you. Or the bald guy? Or ShinRa? Ew! You Like Rufus ShinRa Don't You?" Yuffie screamed as we walked into Seventh Heaven. When she saw everyone she yelled, "Rayne Likes Rufus ShinRa!"

"I Do Not!" I yelled back.

It was silent in the room for a while. Tifa finally broke the awkward silence, "You two…uh…bought a lot of things."

"Oh Yeah!" Yuffie chimed and I was spared, "We got Rayne a lot of clothes today. Nothing really pretty though accept for her dresses-"

Cloud seemed to choke on his drink, "Dresses?"

"Shut Up!" I called with a red face, "Little Miss Sunshine made me get them."

"What if you go on a date with Rufus? You wanna look pretty right?" She asked.

"I Don't Like ShinRa!" I yelled again. Everyone else laughed.

"What's that?" Cloud asked, effectively moving the conversation for me.

I grinned, "My new toy." I pulled the blade from its holster and jerked it, the second blade sliding out and locking in place. "Isn't it pretty?" I cooed happily.

Cloud took it, examining it, "It's a good blade." He commented lightly.

"It makes me smile," I grinned like an idiot.

"I want to see you in one of those dresses," Tifa said.

"The day I get a date is the day you'll see me in one," I mused.

Yuffie had her phone in hand, "I'll Call Rufus!"

"Shut It, Kisaragi!" I barked.

**Street lights glisten on the boulevard  
And cold nights make staying alert so hard  
For heaven's sake, keep me awake so I won't be caught off guard  
Clearly I am a passerby but I'll find a place to stay  
**

**-'Rainbow Veins' by Owl City**


	3. House Hunting

**Chapter Three – House Hunting**

_**23 now, got his life in his hands  
He's looking all around and he doesn't understand  
Cause life's too busy, things get in the way  
We all feel alone every single day  
**_

_**-'Wasted' by Cartel**_

Unable to keep my head up through Yuffie's morning perkiness, my head collided with the table I sat at. When did we get to sleep? About two hours ago. Why did we stay up so late? Yuffie wanted to do _everything_. Watch movies, do makeovers, dance around the room in our underwear, play video games, make cookies that would kill Jenova, etc. What happened if I didn't participate? Well…

"_I thought we were friends now!" Yuffie cried._

"_Yuffie, we are-"_

"_A friend would let her friend cut her hair!"_

"_I like having hair-"_

"_No You Don't!"_

"_Actually…I really do-"_

"_You Hate Me!"_

"_No, I-"_

"_Admit It!"_

"_Yuff-"_

"_I Knew It!_

I need to do something tactful..._I thought. "You…wanna dance in our underwear?"_

"_YEAH!" She jumped up and turned the music on, throwing her shirt off._

And now, added on to my normal moodiness when I wake, I had only two hours of sleep and one Yuffie that wouldn't shut up. I was starting to wonder if I had made the right decision when I took Zack and Aerith's offer. _Don't think like that, this is better than living with regrets. Hell,_ I thought, _I've lived more in these past two days than I have in years._

I looked up when I heard Yuffie say something about Seventh Heaven, "Rewind and play."

"We should go see what Cloud and Tifa are up to at Seventh Heaven," She repeated.

I sighed and picked myself up out of the chair I had collapsed in, "Okay." I went back to Yuffie's room and changed. When I came back we left.

On our way there I said, "As much as I'd love to hang out with you today, I really want to ask Cloud if he'd come with me to find a new place for me."

"Why Cloud?" She asked.

"He helped me find my last place," I explained, "If it wasn't for him I would have ended up buying a place that fell apart."

"Wow," Yuffie awed, "You suck at choosing houses."

"You don't have to tell me," I mused, tying my hair up in a low ponytail.

I talked to Cloud right after we arrived at Seventh Heaven only to be declined. He apparently had deliveries today and I knew Tifa had to run the bar. Yuffie had already taken to babysitting Zack while both parents worked so I was left on my own which was a bad thing.

I was about to leave when the bell on the door jingled, signaling a customer. "What's goin' on, yo?" I knew it was the heartbreaker himself. I turned and leaned on the bar, knowing what was about to happen. "Back from the dead, angel?" Reno asked, coming towards me.

"Your boss owes me a house," I said smugly.

"You can move in with me," He offered.

"I'm actually looking for my own place today, sorry," I mock pouted.

"Too bad," He sighed and put his arms behind his head, "That was a serious offer too."

"Until you got bored with me," I laughed. He shrugged, "I could use you though." He raised his eyebrow, "You any good at looking at houses?"

"I'm one of ShinRa's right hand men, its part of my job to find things no one else can," He grinned, "Leave it to me."

"Then you got a date for the day," I laughed.

Then Yuffie ruined the amusing moment, "So It's Reno You Like!"

"I don't like Reno either!" I yelled back. Before she could give the red head anymore ideas, I said goodbye to everyone and drug the lady's man out of the bar.

After a while of walking, Reno cunningly lagging behind, decided to start a conversation, "Hey, any truth to what the ninja said?"

"Yuffie seems to have it in her head I like someone and I don't," I huffed. "First she thought I had a thing for ShinRa, now she thinks I have a thing for you." I groaned, "She won't let me go until she finds out who my non-existent secret love is."

"But it's not me?" He asked, lagging behind more. I was regretting my choice of clothes. I was wearing an outfit like Yuffie usually did. Tank top, short shorts, tall boots, taller socks.

"No, it's not you Reno," I huffed. I grabbed his arm and made him walk in front of me.

"Why am I in the lead?" He asked, "I don't know where we're going."

"The first house you see with a 'for sale' sign," I told him, "There's a house right down the road from the bar that I'm hoping won't be in very bad shape.

"You mean this one?" He asked.

I leaned against his back in disbelief when he stopped. The house had been marked 'condemned' and was already half destroyed.

"Now where?" He grinned.

"Next street," I instructed slightly forlorn.

* * *

The next house was older than dirt, bricks falling out of the walls even. I dead paned as I stared at the crumbling heap. Reno glanced at me and said, "I don't think you want this one."

* * *

The one after that was sold. "Too bad," Reno cooed.

* * *

The last house looked perfect. I was ecstatic up until we started up the side walk. At that point the house caved in on itself. I fell to the ground with waterfall tears. Reno, with his hands in his pockets, looked down at me, "You can still stay with me." He offered.

"Do I have a choice?" I cried.

"There's still Yuffie," He remained.

"I'll stay with you." My reply was instant. I wouldn't survive another night with Yuffie and Reno knew that. "Don't expect me to be all gung ho about sharing a bed though."

"I won't try anything," He defended. "I'll even take the couch."

"Really?" I asked standing up.

"Hey, I'm a gentleman."

"Genital-man." I said with a laugh.

"C'mon!" He cried, "I'm not that bad!"

"Fine, Mr. _Gentle_man," I challenged, "Then you won't mind helping me carry my things from Yuffie's house."

"As a matter of fact," He retorted, "I don't mind."

"_Re_~ally?"

* * *

I watched with amusement as Reno struggled with most of the things while I only had two bags. "You sure you don't want me to carry anymore than just two things?" I teased.

"Nope," He replied, "I got this."

I almost lost it when we got to his place and he almost dropped everything trying to hold it all _and_ unlock the door. When he did though he dropped everything, leaving just barely enough room to get through the door and close it. "Why thank you, Reno."

"No problem," He replied, pulling his goggles off and wiping his sweat covered brow. "Why do you have so much crap anyway?"

"You can thank your boss for that," I sneered, "He's the one that sold all my things and my house. Thanks to him, I had to go through town yesterday with Yuffie and get new clothes."

"Yeah?" He asked slightly distracted. He picked something up out of one of the bags. "If you don't have a thing for anyone," he commented, and then turned around, stretching a pair of black lacy underwear between his fingers with a grin, "Then who are these for?"

My face turned red and I lunged for the unmentionables, "I didn't want them! Yuffie snuck them!"

Reno held them just out of my reach, "I don't believe that."

I stood on my tip toes trying to get the demon underwear but Reno leaned away laughing, "Don't care if you do or not, give 'em!"

"Nu uh," He mused.

"Why not?" I demanded.

"'Cause you want 'em back so bad."

I knew before I asked that I was going to regret it but it came out anyway, "What do I have to do to get them back?"

He raised an eyebrow and a sly grin spread across his face, a strange glint in his green eyes. "Hmm…" He thought, walking away. He tapped his chin with his finger and spun the demon panties on his other index finger. "What should I say?" He was enjoying this.

"Reno!" I yelled.

"Fine, fine," He turned around and looked at me, now on the other side of the room. "How about a date? A real date."

"…" I stared at him incredulously, "Like…what?"

"Nothing out there, just a nice dinner, what do ya say?" He asked, spinning the underwear on his finger again.

I thought it over. His terms were fairly reasonable compared to the havoc he could wreak with the item at stake. I sighed, "Fine."

"Great," He smiled, "How about tomorrow?" Then he stuffed the underwear in his pocket and walked into the bed room. "Takin' a shower," He announced.

"I don't need to know!" I yelled back.

_~Yahu wakashi no kakuze~_

_~Yahu wakashi no kakuze~_

_~Yahu wakashi no-_

_(Final Fantasy victory song (spelling is probably wrong))_

"Hello?" I said, answering my cell phone.

"Hey, Rayne!" Yuffie chimed, "How's the house hunt going?"

A dark cloud grew over top of me, "I **hate**you."

_**Speak, now, you must have a secret kept down  
Down where you can keep it  
I need you to spill your guts**_

**_Until then, you can runaway  
Do your best to hide your face  
Oh, I know you best,  
I know you get what you get,_**

_**-'Runaway' by Cartel**_


	4. I Dream Of You

**Chapter Four – I Dream Of You**

_**Now I run to you,  
**__**Like I always do,  
**__**When I close my eyes,  
**__**I think of you.  
**__**Such a lonely girl,  
**__**Such a lonely world,  
**__**When I close my eyes,  
**__**I dream…of you**_

_**-'7 Years and 50 Days' by Groove Coverage**_

It was about lunch time and I sat against the wall, artfully hitting my head against it. Reno gave me a look when he came out of the bed room in a black t-shirt and pants with a towel on his head. "What?"

"Nothin'," He shrugged and fell onto the couch. I continued to knock my head against the wall. He looked at me, "You bored or something?"

"No," I replied, "I'm actually glad to have a break. The past two days have been too exciting."

"Well, dyin' and all kinda makes people miss you," He grinned, "You have to expect one hell of a party when you suddenly come back."

I smiled, "Yeah." He raised and eyebrow, "After all the things I said and did I'm surprised so many people missed me."

"Death does that to people," He mumbled.

"Yeah…" It was quiet for a while then a thought occurred to me, "Why aren't you at work?"

"Got the day off," He grinned.

"Really? And why did you go to the bar so early in the morning?"

"Got bored," He took to drying his hair, "Figured someone down there would give me something to do."

"Good thing I came along then, huh?" I sighed, stood and walked behind him, snatching the towel out of his hands.

"Yeah-what are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm about to kill you," I mused and draped the damp cloth over his shoulders and started dying his longer hair, it having already left a wet streak down his back. "You're the only person I know that can pull off a look like this."

"Of course," I could hear his grin.

I flipped the towel over his head. We sat around for a few hours, making light conversation. "Yuffie earlier called and said Tifa could use my help at the bar about this time if I was up for it so I'm heading back there."

"Yeah, sure," He pulled the towel off his head, "But you get to move all that crap back to the bed room."

"I don't think that would be necessary." I leaned against the back of the couch, "I'm only staying until I can find my own place." He shrugged. "I'm serious, Reno."

"Didn't say you weren't," He smirked, amusement in those green eyes of his.

I sighed and walked towards the door, "I'll be back later. Just hang a sock or something on the door if you have some girl over." I knew he was about to say something so I slammed the door and took off down the street. Seconds after I had I heard Reno yelling after me. "This might be more fun than I thought," I mumbled.

* * *

"I am your tool, use me as you see fit," I announced to the brunette upon my arrival.

"The Calvary Has Arrived!" Tifa called with a grin. "Start pouring drinks."

I slid under the door to the bar and started pulling flashy moves with the liquor bottles before pouring the drinks.

"Where'd you learn those moves?" the brunette chimed.

"I get bored too," I grinned.

* * *

Once the crowd had died down and only two people were still in the bar, Yuffie, Tifa, and I sat at a table to talk, Zack having run off with Marlene and Denzel.

"So, how'd it go?" Tifa asked.

"Huh?"

"Looking for a house," She clarified.

"Yeah," The ninja pouted, "Why did you say you hated me when I asked you earlier?"

"Well, I had this great list of houses right?" I began, "All of them were either sold or falling apart, so I took Reno up on his offer."

"What do you mean?" Tifa obviously wasn't around when Reno came into the bar earlier that day.

"I'm living with him-"

"So It _Is_ Reno!" Yuffie called.

"Until I can find my own place," I finished. I realized I was starting to become immune to Yuffie's outbursts.

"You could have stayed with me," the girl pouted again.

"I don't think my nerves could take another night like the one we had last night," I grew exasperated just at the though. "Your energy is going to be the next death of me."

"Are you sure about that, Rayne?" Tifa had a concerned look, "This is Reno."

"I think he means well for once," I chuckled, "He said he'd take the couch."

Both women looked surprised. "Who knew the guy was such a gentleman?" Yuffie spouted.

"That's what he's been saying but after the stunt he pulled earlier, I don't know," I grimaced at the memory.

"He didn't…try anything, did he?" Tifa asked, a hint of anger showing through her voice.

"No, nothing like that." I turned and glared at Yuffie, "It's all your fault."

"Me?" She cried, "What did I do?"

"If It Wasn't for You and Your Demon Panties I Wouldn't Be in the Mess I'm In!" I cried.

She shrank away from my gaze, "So you found 'em, huh?"

"Yeah!" I barked, "So did Reno!"

"I'm confused," The brunette interjected, "Other than Reno spying your unmentionables, what this 'mess' you're in?"

I felt my face heating up, "The only way he'll give them back is if I go on a date with him tomorrow night."

"A _Da~te?_" Yuffie sang.

I turned the full power of my glare on her, which I was sure was equal to the terrifying look Vincent could turn on someone at the moment, "Can it, Cretin!" She shrank away.

"Where are you going?" Tifa's eyes where sparkling.

"Did you forget the reason _why_ I have to do this?" I accused. She shook her head but waited. I heaved a sigh, "He said it didn't have to be anything really 'out there', whatever he meant by that. As far as I know it's just going to be a nice dinner."

"That's not bad," She looked surprised, "I think he's actually trying to impress you, Rayne."

I rolled my eyes, "You just want to see me in a dress."

"That too!" She grinned. Then she sighed, "Wish Cloud and I had the time to do something like that. He's swamped with deliveries though."

"I'd love to babysit Zack," I offered, "Anytime, but especially next time you and Cloud have the chance to be together. You should make some plans to do something really nice. Denzel and Marlene wouldn't be a problem either."

"I wanna help!" Yuffie put her hands on her help, "I can take care of Denny and Marly!"

"And I can close up the bar early and Cloud and I could have a night on the town," She sighed, gaining that far off look. Then she snapped out of it, "I donno, do you think Cloud would go for it?"

"_He better!_" Yuffie and I called together and we all laughed.

"Hey, what time is it?" I called.

"Mm, about ten," Tifa replied looking at the clock behind the bar. "Why?"

"Shit!" I shot up out of my chair, "I have to go."

"She has to get back to _Re~no_," The ninja giggled.

"Yuffie…" I stopped myself, _responding will only encourage her_, I thought.

"Goodnight!" I called and ran out the door.

* * *

I ran from the bar all the way to Reno's house. I wasn't out of breath; I was a former SOLDIER, they would run us like that all the time as part of training. When I walked to the door I noticed the sock hanging on the handle. _He wouldn't really…_

I turned the handle and peeked through the door. He let his head fall on the back of the couch as he looked to the door from the TV and smirked. I walked in and threw the sock at him before closing the door.

"Sorry," I mumbled, "Yuffie, Tifa, and I got to talking and I kind of zoned out on the time."

"It's cool," He turned back to the TV, "I'm usually up this late anyway."

"Really?" I leaned on the back of the couch, "I figured you'd be getting all the sleep you could, working for ShinRa and all."

He grabbed my arm and pulled me onto the couch beside him, "That what you think?"

I crossed my arms over my chest, "Learn a little more every day I guess." I looked to the TV, "Whatcha watching?" He shrugged and flipped the channel. "How long have you been sitting here like this?"

"Donno, a while," He looked bored.

I sat there for a while, "Shower?"

"Bedroom," He replied absently.

"Thank you," I rolled over my shoulder and landed on my feet in front of the couch. Reno looked impressed my little moved but I just shrugged and turned to my bags that I just noticed weren't where I put them. I walked into the bedroom, still no bags. I looked in the closet and in the bottom where my bags. "Reno!"

"What?"

"I told you I'm not staying that long!" I yelled. He didn't respond. I sighed and grabbed some clean clothes and headed into the bathroom. I was surprised to see it wasn't a wreck. I shrugged it off and took my shower.

Clean and Refreshed, I emptied one of my bags into another and stuffed the dirty clothes in the waiting bag. _I love new clothes,_ I thought as I looked down at my night attire. Silky pajama pants and a cute shirt that had **[STFU]** on the chest that was a size too big.

I walked out of the bedroom drying my hair. Reno was in the same spot he was before. I sat down beside him. "Wanna laugh?" I asked. He raised an eyebrow at me. I just sighed, "Pull the towel off my head."

He shook his head but did it, bursting into a fit of laughter the moment the clothe fell. As usual, my hair had turned into a giant poof ball on top of my head. After about three minutes I got irritated that he hadn't stopped laughing yet so I started combing my fingers through the mess on my head.

He finally calmed down, "What was that about, yo?"

I rolled my eyes at his little addition to the question, "You didn't look like Reno."

"Huh?" His eyebrow arched up, mouth hung open slightly, and head tilted to the side slightly in confusion.

"You didn't look like Reno," I repeated. "Usually when I see you, your cocky, confident, and laid back. Since I got back you looked like…for lack of a better explanation, blah."

"Blah?"

"Blah," I repeated.

He grew silent, that somber look coming over his features again. "It was only a week…" He mumbled. "It was like a train wreck when you died."

"So? I'm not dead anymore."

He nodded. There was something in his hand that he was staring at but I couldn't see it. "Everyone missed you."

"_Soooo_?"

"I did too," He mumbled. "I don't know, when you left earlier I just thought it was a dream or something."

"What do you mean?"

"That you came back."

"All my things are here," I pointed out.

"Yeah, who do you think the boss got to clean your house out?" He retorted. "I had most of your things here for about four days before I got the order to get rid of it."

"You're the one who sold off my things?" My blood was becoming like fire in my veins.

"I didn't want to," He defended. Then he dropped what was in his hand in my lap.

I looked at it and started tearing up. It was the two most precious things I had owned: one of two of Zack's dog tags, the other happened to be in Cloud's possession, and a picture of Aerith and me, Zack, and Cloud that we were all smiling in when the three of us where still a part of SOLDIER. "Why did you hold on to these?"

He shrugged and let his head fall on the back of the couch again, "They're yours."

I gave up and let myself sob, "Thank you."

He looked over to me, "Hey, you don't need to cry."

I shook my head but didn't say anything. He stiffened in surprised when I hugged him. "Thank you," I mumbled again. He rubbed my back until I finally calmed down. "Sorry," I mumbled, wiping the tears from my eyes.

"It's cool, yo." He smiled and I couldn't help but return it. "It's late, get some sleep."

"Don't think I'm a push over just because you saw me cry, Red," I gave him a look.

"Didn't say you were," He shot the look right back at me.

I didn't move for a few minute, staring at my most precious objects. I looked back up at him and shook my head, "I'll sleep here."

"Uh…No?" He made it sound like the answer to a question he wasn't sure was right and gave me a confused look.

"Look, Reno, you've done enough for me, just take the bed."

He looked around the room then back to me, "What?"

"Take the damn bed, Reno," I demanded. His little game was getting irritating.

He shook his head, "Can't do it."

"Why?"

"'Cause-"

"Don't pull that 'gentleman' bullshit," I snapped, "I feel bad enough for imposing like this, so don't-"

"Imposing?" He barked a laugh.

"What?"

"It's not imposing if I said it was alright," He laughed.

"I don't care," I barked, "I still fill guilty!"

"We can always share," He suggested as a means to rile me up more, I was sure.

After a moment I said, "Fine. But if any part of you touches me, I'm breaking it."

He looked taken aback by my agreement, and then amused again when he asked, "Break what?"

"Whatever touches me," I replied with a smile and skipped off to the bedroom.

After a few minutes he walked into the bed room and laid down on the right side of the bed, arms behind his head. I turned off the light and crawled under the covers on the left side. After a moment of silence I could hear the grin in his voice when he said, "Kinky."

"Reno?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up." He chuckled but obeyed.

I lay wide awake for half an hour before I looked towards where Reno should have been, "Reno?"

"Mm?" He mumbled.

"I can't sleep," I admitted.

"Hm…" He was quiet. I was sure he had fallen asleep until he started humming lightly. The tune sounded like something I had heard before but I couldn't place the lyrics. Slowly I began drifting off to sleep to the sound of the song I couldn't place, into dreams of a certain red-head.

_**If Heaven and Hell decide  
**__**That they both are satisfied,  
**__**Illuminate the 'NO's on their vacancy signs.  
**__**If there's no one beside you  
**__**When your soul embarks,  
**__**Then I'll follow you into the dark.**_

_**-'I'll Follow You Into The Dark' by Death Cab For Cutie**_


	5. A Gentleman Indeed

**Chapter Five – A Gentleman Indeed**

_**Well I'm not paralyzed  
But, I seem to be struck by you  
I want to make you move  
Because you're standing still  
If your body matches  
What your eyes can do  
You'll probably move right through  
Me on my way to you**_

_**-'Paralyzer' by Finger Eleven**_

I woke up to the irritating sound of my cell phone going nuts on the floor. I groaned and reached down to answer the infernal thing. "What?" I answered rather harshly.

"_You finally up, yo?"_

"Reno?" I sat up and looked around. He was gone. "How'd you get my number?"

"_Raided your phone."_

"Where are you?" I asked, a wave of sleepiness washing over me.

"_Work, where else? It's almost noon."_

"Noon?" I barked. "I didn't know it was that late."

"_Yeah; I should have taped what it was like trying to wake you up. You were a rock, yo."_

I rubbed my eyes. "Ha-ha. Why did you call?"

"_Not sure how, but Yuffie got my number. She's been freaking out because you aren't answering your cell."_

I groaned and heard him laugh. "Thanks, I always _love_ being woken up knowing Yuffie 'needs' me for something."

"_Just call her; she's getting me in trouble down here."_

"And this call isn't?"

"_Not when I'm hiding."_

"Of course," I replied, rolling my eyes.

Someone must have found where he was hiding, and the next moment Rude's voice came through the phone. _Reno, quit talking to your girl and get to work."_

Reno groaned and mumbled, _"Yeah, yeah. Oh! Rayne, get ready at the bar or something, alright? See you tonight." _Then he snapped his phone shut before I could respond.

"His girl?!" I glared at the phone. "Screw you Rude!" I yelled at it. I sighed and called Yuffie.

"_RAYNE!" _She squealed when she answered. _"I thought you were dead! Again." _

"Hey!" I snapped, then shook it off. "What do you want?"

"_Tifa wants to know if you want to help with the bar again before you go on your _date_ with Reno." _

I grimaced. "I'll help," I agreed. "Ask Tifa if I can get ready over there."

"_Why?"_

"I don't know. Reno's going to surprise me with something I'm sure and he needs me out of the house to do it."

"_Ooh. Hold on!" _I waited for a few minutes. _"Tifa said it was fine."_

"Alright," I sighed, "I'll be over in about half an hour."

"_Kay!"_ Then she hung up.

"Does no one say bye anymore?" I asked myself and got up to change.

* * *

There were already a few customers there when I got to the bar. It wasn't unusual for noon, but to me it was still morning due to my late start. "Hello," I called.

"Hey," Tifa greeted upon seeing me. "What's that?" she asked, pointing to the sheet covered clothes hanger I had.

I sighed. "My dress," I explained.

"Oh!" she squealed. "Can I see?"

"You can see it later," I sighed. "You have customers right now."

"Oh, right." She gave a customer his drink, then turned back to me, "Hey, Rayne, do you mind switching jobs with Yuffie?"

"It depends on what she's doing," I replied warily.

"She's babysitting Zack," she explained, and I felt relief wash over me. "He's been crying for you all morning."

"I don't mind swapping," I assured her and ran upstairs. Yuffie came running down in my place.

"Aunny Wayne!" I heard before I had hit the top of the steps.

"Hey, midget!" I grinned and picked the tuff of dark hair up and swung him in the air. He giggled happily. "Miss me? Oh…" I set the tike down to pick up my forgotten dress and took it back to the spare room. Two small curious hands grabbed onto the bottom of the sheet and stared up at the "unknown" object. "No, no, Zacky," I cooed and picked him up. "We see later, kay?"

"Kay," he mimicked with a smile. "Play," he demanded.

I smiled at his innocence. He was going to be a heartbreaker one day. I could tell that already.

* * *

At about five Cloud came rolling in. After taking a shower he spent time with his wonderful little son and his awesome twin sister. He was such a good father. He was smiling much more than he use to, but then again, it was hard _not_ to smile with Zack around. Cloud would do anything the child wanted him to and would rid him of anything harmful with a firm but gentle hand. I marveled at the site of it.

_He's grown so much._

I was sure he was caught off guard when I suddenly hugged him after about an hour of watching the adorable display of father/son bonding. Then he sounded concerned as he asked, "Is something wrong, Rayne?"

Then I felt little hands on my leg. "Aunny Wayne?"

I pulled away from him. "Nothing could be more right at the moment," I explained, smiling. "I have a real relationship with my brother, I have the most adorable little nephew in the world, and I'm not on my date with Reno yet."

"What?" That seemed to catch him more off guard than the hug.

"Yeah," I sighed. "A certain series of events led to me having to go on a date with Reno in order to get a certain object back." He gave me a quizzical look. "You don't want the details, trust me. But if you're that curious, you can go ask Tifa. Yuffie would be more than happy to spill the story to you, too."

He shook his head, his hair shifting slightly but not really moving anywhere. "If he tries to pull a move on you…" He left the statement open for the sake of his son I was sure.

"You'll have to drag Tifa off him first," I laughed. My own hair bounced, and Zack grabbed at from Clouds lap.

Suddenly there was the sound of breaking glass down stairs. Instincts kicked in, and I was up and flying down the stairs in a heartbeat. Cloud followed shortly after with Zack in his arms. A bar fight had broke out and four guys were going at it. I heard Cloud tell Yuffie to take Zack and the two of us sprung into action, breaking up the fight with ease and throwing out the ruffians.

As I threw the last one out I yelled, "It's a _bar_, not a fight club!" As I turned to go back in one threw a foot out to catch me behind the knee. "Oh, bad move," I growled menacingly.

I turned around and got a few good punches on the guy before Cloud pulled me off him. "Rayne, it's not worth it."

"What's there at risk?" I laughed but followed him back inside.

He didn't respond but pulled me after him back upstairs and into the spare bedroom. "Look, Rayne," he began. "You need control. If you don't have that…you'll end up doing things you regret; just like before."

I winced, understanding what he was getting at. I sighed and sat on the bed. "I'm bad with control."

"I know." He crossed his arms and leaned against the door.

"I don't know how to exercise control," I hinted. "I know," he repeated.

"You know, just saying 'I know' doesn't help me much," I pointed out with an irritated glare.

He looked at the floor for a minute before looking at me. "Then try this: whenever you're about to do something, think about whether you would want Zack to see that."

"That kinda puts a downer on sex," I mumbled.

"I didn't mean-"

"I know." I grinned at the slight pink coloring of his face. How was it that someone his age _with a child _could still be awkward at the mention of sex? Then I was a bit more serious as I said, "That could work. The last thing I want is to do something that would end up making him afraid of me. I'll try that from now on."

He nodded and pushed himself off the door. He opened the door to reveal Yuffie waiting on the other side but stopped when the sound of a cell phone rang. I flipped open the phone and pressed it to my ear. "What is it, _yo_?" I mocked.

"_Ha-ha,"_ Reno laughed. _"I just got off; how long will it take you to get ready?"_

I groaned inwardly. "I don't know. How long does it generally take someone to get ready for a date?"

Yuffie, realizing what the conversation was about, snatched the phone from my hand. "She'll be ready in an hour." And then snapped the phone shut. She threw it back to me then held Zack out to Cloud. "Out, out, out!" she cried, pushing the man from the room. "I have a woman to make!"

"So what does that make me now?" I accused.

She turned to me and thought for a fraction of a second before replying with, "A very feminine man." If I hadn't been struck speechless, I probably would have retaliated. She slammed the door shut- making me flinch slightly- and then came towards me in quite a menacing advance.

* * *

An hour later I stood in front of a full length mirror in awe, Yuffie on my left nodding in approval, and Tifa on my right almost crying. She ran to hug me when she first saw me, but Yuffie interjected saying that the only person allowed to "mess me up" was Reno, at which I rolled my eyes. Cloud even looked taken aback by my appearance.

"So there _is_ a girl under there…" he mumbled. The two laughed and I hit him in the chest which, as I knew, had no affect on him. But it made me feel a bit better inside.

"Hello?" came a call from the bottom of the stairs. He was here.

"No, no, no, no, no!" I ran and locked myself in the bathroom in a moment of panic. "What's wrong, Rayne?" Tifa called on the other side of the door. "You look beautiful!" As if that was my problem.

"Don't be mean, Cloud!" I heard Yuffie yell.

"I've never been on an actual date before!" I explained, almost shrieking. "I can't possibly go through with this!"

I assumed it was Yuffie that started pounding on the door. I was proved right when she yelled, "If you don't you won't get the undies back!" I groaned; that _was_ why I was doing this. I sighed and reluctantly opened the door.

Tifa grabbed my arm and pulled me to the stairs. She gave me a wink. "Now rock that slow entrance," she encouraged.

I took a deep breath and lifted the skirt some so I could see the steps. I felt out of my element enough, and the last thing I needed was to trip and fall down the stairs and further embarrass myself. I made my way down the stairs slowly.

I spotted Cloud with his back turned to me talking quietly to Reno at the end of the bar. I was surprised to see the redhead was actually dressed up, which made me feel a bit more relaxed knowing I wasn't over dressed. He had a dress coat on, a nice button down shirt that was actually buttoned up all the way, and black dress pants. He even had a tie on.

He was nodding to something Cloud had said when his eyes shifted to me and widened considerably. I felt my cheeks burn when he just stared at me. After a few moments I looked away, mumbling, "What?"

I could still feel his gaze burn into me. "You look…whoa." My blush only deepened as the drunkards around the bar started whistling and catcalling.

With an irritated glare and my blush still in place, I turned to Cloud and said bye. I grabbed Reno's arm, pulling him outside the bar. I was surprised to see the nice car that waited outside.

The red-head cleared his throat, causing me to turn towards him. The blush that had finally gone away reappeared. He was bowed slightly, with one hand behind his back and a red rose in his other.

I looked away but took the flower. He opened the door for me and I climbed into the car, making sure that my dress wouldn't get caught in the door when it shut.

We rode in silence to our destination- what it was, I still had no idea. Every time I chanced a glance at him he had that smirk on his face. It was driving me crazy not knowing where we were headed but I refused to break the silence between us.

When we _did_ arrive my head grew dizzy at the level of fanciness of the restaurant. _When he said "nice dinner" that had to be the biggest understatement I've ever heard,_ I thought. "You can afford a place like this?" I asked out loud.

He laughed. "In ranks of those of us who work for ShinRa, I'm right under the number one man." He didn't give me a chance to remark as he was already out of the car and opening my door. He led me inside and the waiter seated us immediately which meant Reno had somehow gotten reservations. But, again, I didn't get a chance to ask as I was, once again, shocked. The table was off in a secluded corner and was covered in rose petals.

He pulled my seat out for me. I continued to stare at the table in awe. He pulled me over to the seat eventually and had me sit down. He sat directly across from me at the round petal showered table with a grin. After the waiter took our drink orders, Reno turned his full attention to me. He leaned forward on the table, "So, what do you think?"

"I…" I had no idea how to respond. I had to choose my words carefully; I didn't want to encourage his flirting, especially since we were sharing a bed. "It's…very nice, Reno."

The sparkle in his eyes seemed to dim slightly. "Glad you think so."

I nodded, and silence ensued. _Damn, this is awkward,_ I thought. I busied myself with looking over the menu without really looking at what was on there. Once the waiter brought our drinks out and took our orders, I finally thought of something that would at least break the silence that had settled over us. "Um, what exactly was Cloud talking to you about earlier?"

Those green eyes were filled with amusement as he replied, "Don't think you wanna know."

I raised an eyebrow. "See; now you just piqued my interest even more."

He shrugged. "He told me this was your first actual date and if I hurt you he'd string me up by my hair and let you swing at me like a piñata."

My cheeks burned. "I love him, but I'm going to kill him."

Reno laughed. "What? You didn't want me to know this was your first date?" He shook his head. "That just made me hope that I make this night memorable, in a good way."

"Why?" I gave him a distrusting look.

"So in case I screw up later I can remind you how great this night was," he admitted and adjusted the goggles on his head.

"What do you mean by 'screw up'?" He shrugged but didn't say anything. I shook it off and asked, "So, I'm curious; how did you manage to book a place like this the night before we come?"

He grinned again. "ShinRa owned building," he explained.

I started laughing. "You're kidding right?" He shook his head. I choked and whispered, "I'm a member of AVALANCHE, Reno!" Despite the new alliance, many still held a grudge against our "terrorist organization."

"Yeah, so? Not like anyone would recognize you tonight," he shot back. "_I_ almost didn't. You look too incredible to be real." He leaned back in his chair pulling at his tie a bit.

My cheeks flushed. "T-thank you," I mumbled.

He looked back at me and smirked. "You've never dressed like that before, have you?" I shook my head and played with one of the rose petals on the table that fell into my lap. "Relax," he chuckled. "The only reason anyone would stare is because you look amazing."

I nodded but didn't look up. "Or," he started more seriously "would you be acting like this because you really didn't want to come that much?"

"What?" My head snapped up. "No! Well, at first I wasn't really looking forward to it…and then when you showed up I locked myself in the bathroom…" He laughed. "I'm just nervous," I explained.

"Why?" His tone warned me to be wary of how I respond.

"First date," I mumbled and took to looking at the painting beside me. It looked like the Forgotten City. "Hey, Reno? Why did you choose this?"

"Huh?"

I looked back to him. "Why did you choose this? You could have said anything else, why just a date?"

He shrugged. "Figured you'd grab that scary ass sword of yours and lop my head off if I said anything more than that." He was lying. I wasn't sure how I knew it, but he was lying.

_What's his real reason?_ I asked myself but I never got to voice the question as our food had arrived. Throughout the meal- whether to keep the awkward silence at bay or to keep me from asking the question that had been nagging at me- Reno would ask nominal questions. The ones that helped you learn about other people but still didn't really amount to much; they wouldn't seriously impact someone's view of another.

I learned more about him though. His favorite color was not red, but was, in fact, orange. He admitted that his house was usually a mess and when I asked why it didn't look that way when I got there, he said he was embarrassed by it and pick it up before I could see it. His favorite kind of food was Midgarian and he hated Costa Solian. He refused to tell me why he always wore his goggles and after a while I figured there wasn't a reason. As it turns out, he didn't drink as often as one would think but when he did, he got smashed. Also, he didn't really like little kids, which I thought was funny.

It turn, he now knew my favorite color to be blue, my house always use to be a wreck (even though he already knew that from clearing out my things after I died), I loved traditional Wutaian food and also hated Costa Solian, and I loved little kids.

Now he was probing me on why I refused to drink anymore. Finally I gave in. "Okay, you remember the first day we met?"

"Of course," he grinned.

_**~Flashback~**_

_I was leaning up against the bar watching everyone have a good time. Sephiroth was gone and we were celebrating. Even some of the Turks from the ShinRa Company had showed up. The red-haired came over to me and leaned against the bar beside me, some form of liquor in his hand. He just stood there for a few minutes while I ignored him. _

_Then he rolled his head towards me. "Yo, name's Reno."_

"_I know, you chased us up Mt. Nibel," I replied then offered my own name. "Rayne Strife."_

_He nodded then turned to the crowded bar. "So, which one is with you?"_

_I laughed. "No one."_

"_Really?" He sounded surprised. "I'd take you in a heartbeat, beautiful."_

"_Yeah, sure." I laughed again._

"_What?"_

"_I'm a bit too…rowdy," I replied. "I usually scare guys off."_

"_Don't scare me," he retorted._

_I laughed again. "You haven't seen me get pissed."_

_He shrugged. "I'd still take you." I just chuckled. "What, don't believe me? Then try me. Let me take you out."_

_I shook my head. "Sorry, pretty-boy, you're not getting lucky tonight." And I walked off._

_All night though, anytime someone would walk by I'd see that his collection of empty booze bottles had grown. Eventually I looked to the drink in my hand and set it on the counter, walking away from it._

_**~End Flashback~**_

"You ended up so shit faced that Rude _and_ Yuffie had to drag you out of the bar," I giggled. "After seeing that, I've never touched the stuff again."

He laughed too. "That only happened because you rejected me."

"Aw, your first rejection?" I cooed.

"No," he shot back. "But really? That only made me want you more," he laughed. "But in a different way."

I gave him a confused look. "What do you mean?"

"Well…" He suddenly grew serious. "I dunno, I just realized once you rejected me how different you were from the other women I've gone out with." He shrugged and leaned back in his chair again. "I mean you saw through the pretty words and charm. I respect you for that. Any other woman would eat that shit up."

I smiled. "Why thank you, Reno. Just for the record, it's not so much that I didn't 'eat it up'. Any woman wants a guy like that, but the thing is I could tell you didn't mean a word of it."

He laughed and said, "Then you don't think very highly of yourself." He looked at me again. "I wasn't lying when I told you that you didn't scare me. I know you can throw one hell of a punch, kick as much ass as any guy, and probably beat the hell out of me if you wanted to." He shrugged. "I'm just not afraid of that. Rude and I beat the hell out of each other on almost a daily basis."

I laughed. "That's not what I meant so much as the-"

"I'd take you in a heartbeat?" I nodded. "That wasn't a lie either, though at the time I meant it in a different way." I shook my head. "I would though."

I stared at him in confusion. "Now explain what you mean by that _this_ time."

He chuckled, amusement but also some other emotion in his eyes I wasn't use to seeing. "I mean I'd be more than happy to have you by my side. Just to have the chance to tell people that you're mine."

I blushed and looked away. "I'm not that great, Reno." I saw him shake his head from the corner of my eye. "I'm not. I have an issue when it comes to controlling myself, especially when I'm mad. I'm stubborn, so much that I had to die to realize how stupid I've been about the past two years. I don't like seeing my friends hurt but I turn around and hurt them too." I shook my head. "I'm not a suitable person at all to be with."

"Who the hell is nowadays?" He had his elbow on the table and his head in his hand and he just smiled at me. "Everyone has control issues and problems getting mad. If you're not stubborn at all people would walk all over you and at some point or another you're going to hurt your friends, yo. They forgive you though; that's why they're your friends."

"Reno-"

"Doesn't matter what you say," he interrupted, shaking his head. "I can't see any problem with you that no one else has."

"…" I stared at the table that had been long since rid of the plates that had sat before us. What was I suppose to say? I'd known Reno for a long time but I'd never thought about him that way. He obviously wanted me to date him and had practically just asked me out. "I…Reno…I don't know…"

He shrugged. "I can wait. Have this long."

I looked up at him. "Why? Why would you wait? What if I never have feelings for you?"

He shrugged again. "I guess I'll deal with that when you tell me, yo." He grinned. "I'm not giving up until then though."

"Why?" I demanded again.

"'Cause." His grin turned into a heartfelt smile. "I want to take care of you and I know I can make you happy." I just stared at him, taking in his response. _What am I suppose to say?_ I looked away but my eyes snapped back when he moved to stand. "C'mon, it's getting late."

I stood and followed him out of the restaurant and to the car. Again he opened the door for me. I climbed in and he drove back to the bar. I gave him a confused look before I saw Cloud open the door and step up to the car. Reno rolled the window down and leaned across me saying, "She's still alive and kickin'."

Cloud looked to me. I rolled my eyes and said, "I'm fine; he's been a good little boy." [I understand this is humor, but kitty is still pretty out there.] Cloud raised an eyebrow at my comment but nodded and walked back into the bar. "Demand from my keeper?" I asked Reno as he rolled my window up.

"The guy thought I was going to run off with you or leave you dead in a ditch or something." He laughed. "If I was gonna kill you I'd do something a bit more creative."

"Oh?" I inquired. "Like what?"

He thought for a moment. "Dunno. Ask Rude probably."

"Lazy," I laughed.

"Lazy my ass," the red-head spouted. "I planned out tonight all by myself, thank you."

"Really?" I smiled. "It was very nice."

"So you said," he mumbled.

"What? Were you expecting something more…enthusiastic?" I asked.

He huffed. "Kinda."

"Aw, are you pouting?" I poked his cheek.

"No."

"I think you are."

"I'm not pouting, yo!"

"Whatever." I sat back and smiled. "I had a lot of fun, Reno. More than I thought I would. Thank you."

"That's more like it, yo." He grinned ear to ear.

* * *

When we got back to his house the first thing I did was take a shower to wash out the can of hairspray Yuffie used on my head. Reno took one next and I sat on the floor of the bedroom scrolling through the new text messages I had, thankful that I hadn't taken it with me. I had at least fifty from Yuffie and fifteen from Tifa. I even had one from Cloud. _Aw, he does care._

I ducked my head under the bed when Reno came out of the bathroom in a towel- only a towel. "What the hell are you doing?!"

I heard the sound of drawers opening and closing quickly, but Reno sounded calm when he said. "Getting clothes, yo."

"Yo-yo yourself back into the bathroom then!" I yelled. All I heard was the bathroom door shutting. I stayed under the bed just for good measure. Then the next thing that happened was there was a hand on my back grabbing hold of my shirt and pulling me out from under the bed.

"No bra? Kinky," he said, sitting on the bed drying his hair. I ignored his comment as I sat up on the floor, regaining my composure.

It was quiet. Then I made a decision. I got up on my knees and leaned on his legs with my arms, looking up at him. He looked surprised at my move. I was surprised I wasn't nervous. Then, I leaned up and kissed his lips. Just a soft, innocent kiss. One which Reno ate up, but didn't push it farther than what it was meant to be.

Then I pulled away. "I still don't know about this, Reno-"

"Its fine," he interrupted. "We can take it slow; I don't mind."

I smiled and hugged him. Maybe I could do this too. If I can manage to apologize for all the things I did before, then I could defiantly do this. And besides, Reno wasn't as bad a guy as I thought he was. And he seemed sincere. I could do this.

_**If I could tear you from the ceiling,  
and guarantee a source divine,  
rid you off possessions fleeting,  
remain your funny valentine.**_

_**Don't go and leave me,  
and please don't drive me blind,**_

_**-'Blind' by Placebo**_


	6. The Night After

**Chapter Six - The Night After**

_**Far beyond the hazy borders of my heart  
I could see a place that's something like this  
Every now and then I don't know what to do  
Still I know that I can never go back  
But the things I've seen in those hazy dreams  
Can't compare to what I'm seeing now  
Everything's so different that it brings me to my knees**_

_**-'Real Emotion' by Noubu**_

I figured that after what had occurred between us just moments ago would make sleeping beside Reno awkward, but it wasn't. He didn't do anything at all. He just lay on top of the covers like the night before with his hands behind his head and hummed. He was so much more respectful that I had originally thought him to be. It made me wonder if I was the only one that thought of him as a womanizer, but then I remembered Yuffie calling him a heartbreaker, Tifa being paranoid about me staying with him, and Cloud threatening him before our date.

"Reno?" I asked quietly in case he had fallen asleep.

"Hm?"

"Why does everyone think you're such a ladies' man?"

He sighed. "Guess it's because that's I was. If I saw a pretty face I'd use whatever charm I had to get 'em in bed, yo. Did that with you too, remember? After your first rejection, any advances I made towards you were just to try and get you to notice me. Didn't really like that I had to stoop so low to get it." He even sounded slightly disgusted with himself. It made me feel better knowing that he hadn't done it just to mess with me.

I rolled over to face him. "Speaking of which…"

"It's in your bags," he replied. "The real reason I decided on a date instead of asking you to sleep with me or something was 'cause I wanted to show you that you meant more to me than that, yo."

"Why me, Reno?" I asked quietly.

He shrugged. "Dunno. Ya just got that spark, I guess."

I felt myself smile. "Well, you definitely got my attention. The question is now, will you be faithful?"

He laughed. "I've worked too hard to get to this point to screw up now."

I mock scoffed. "So if it had been easier to get me then you'd sleep around?" I teased.

"No," he replied. "I was just saying how hard it was to get you."

We lay there in silence for a moment. Then, the urge I had been repressing for some time became too much, and I gave in. "Reno? Let me see your arm."

"Why?" The suspicion was clear in his voice.

"I'm not going to hurt you," I laughed. He hesitantly lowered his arm and I wrapped my arms around it, clinging tightly. "Good night."

He looked at me oddly and I just smiled at him. Then his eyes softened and he chuckled, "Yeah, good night."

* * *

I woke up early the next morning empty handed. _I could have sworn I was glued to an arm…_ While my sleepy brain was trying to comprehend this, I rolled onto my back, falling off the bed with a small scream. I groaned and sat up on the floor, glaring at the bed above me.

"You alright?" I looked up to see Reno, who was fully dressed for work, standing there with a hand extended towards me.

"Yeah." I yawned and let him pull me up off the floor. I fell against him, throwing him off balance temporarily. Our closeness might have been slightly awkward any other time, but considering I was on the verge of falling back asleep, I didn't really care. He held me up as I started to drift off.

He picked me up and set me back on the bed. "Not a morning person at all, are you?" I was fairly certain that he was shaking his head, but I couldn't be sure. He started walking away when I grabbed his sleeve. He turned back to me and sat on the edge of the bed. "Something wrong, yo?"

"Don't die, okay?" I was only half aware of what I was saying, and even less sure of how he was reacting to it, but I could still see the confusion on his face. So I attempted to clarify by saying, "You work for ShinRa. Don't die."

He grinned, laughing as he replied, "I won't. Go back to sleep." I nodded and buried myself under the covers.

When I woke up again, it sounded- and looked, once I got around to opening my eyes- like my cell phone was having a seizure. I flipped it open and snapped, "What?"

"_How was your date??!"_ Yuffie squealed.

I groaned. "Where are you?"

"_Home. Well, not home-home. Because that's in Wutai. But my home here in Edge."_

"Rendezvous at Seventh Heaven," I told her. "I'm sure Tifa wants to know too."

"_Sure thing!!"_ she replied, and then the line went dead.

After spending an hour explaining everything that had happened, both women were grinning and giggling like schoolgirls. "I can't believe you're dating Reno!" Yuffie squealed.

"I can't believe you're sharing a bed with him," Tifa said in a hushed tone.

"I can't believe I'm in this position either," I mumbled.

"In what position?" I froze, and so did the two brunettes. I turned around and found my other- and identical- half standing there.

"So, uh…" I scratched the back of my head, looking for the right words.

"Rayne and Reno are dating!" Yuffie practically shouted in joy, saving me the trouble of having to awkwardly tell him.

Cloud's eyes grew cold and hard. _That's not a good sign…_ He flipped his phone out of his pocket and dialed a number, walking back up the stairs.

"Shit," I cursed, realizing what he was doing as I chased after him. "Cloud-"

He was already talking to someone and held a finger up to me, silently telling me to hold on. He was speaking too low for me to really catch what was being said. Then he snapped his phone shut. "Rayne, before you say anything, you're my sister. Whether you like it or not, I'm going to look out for you."

I crossed my arms and demanded, "So what did you threaten him with this time?"

He avoided the question. "I'm not going to let you get hurt," was all he said.

I was about to start cussing again when I heard the pitter patter of little feet followed by a cry of, "Aunny Wayne!" I groaned. _Control, Rayne, control._

"Hey, Zacky." I picked the tike up and set him on my hip. Cloud smirked in victory. I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Rayne," he began, quieter and a bit more awkward than before. "I…" His cheeks gained just the slightest hint of color as he spoke. "I need a favor."

"Hm?"

"Could you watch Zack tonight?" he mumbled and looked away.

"Oh! Of course! You and Tifa have a nice night." I grinned. He gave me a shocked look, so I explained, "I was the one that planed it so you two could go out. Yuffie is taking care of Denzel and Marlene, right?" He nodded. "See? Don't worry about anything; just relax and enjoy yourselves."

He nodded again. "Thank you."

"Hey, we're family," I replied. I smiled, then I addressed the kid digging through my hair. "Right, squirt?" He giggled and hid behind his hands. "Just make sure I'll have everything I need to take care of him."

"Tifa already took care of that." He nodded to the two bags in the corner.

"Right-o." I carried the little-tike off to entertain him while Cloud helped Tifa.

After a while I got a call. I flipped the phone open and Zack made a grab for it. "Hi!" he called into the phone. "Who this?" Another pause. "Uh huh." Yet another pause, then, "Kay." Then he handed the phone to me.

I took the phone. "Hello?"

"_Who was that?" _a very confused Reno asked.

I laughed. "Zack," I explained. "He grabbed the phone, sorry."

"_So it's safe to assume you're up?"_

"Is that why you called?"

"_Got bored." _I could almost hear the shrug.

I laughed again. "So what are you suppose to be doing?"

He sighed. _"Paper work. Not that fun."_

"Tell Rude I said hi."

"_Why do you think we share an office?"_

"You do, don't you?"

"_Yeah, but why do you just assume that?"_

"Partner's usually do." I switched topics before he could reply. "Oh, I hope you don't mind, but I've volunteered to take care of Zack tonight."

He was quiet for a moment. _"Why?"_

"Because Cloud and Tifa deserve some time to themselves," I replied. Then a more pressing thought came to mind. "Cloud called you, didn't he?"

He sighed. _"Yeah; told me if I hurt you he wouldn't hesitate to kill me."_

I groaned. "He's so overprotective."

"_He cares,"_ he replied.

I shrugged. "Doesn't mean he's not over protective."

I heard him mumble something to someone else, then, _"Rude said hey."_

"And he told you to get back to work, didn't he?"

He groaned. _"Yeah."_

"Then get to work!" I snapped the phone shut and laughed. "He's so funny, isn't he Zacky?"

"Funny head," he giggled.

* * *

Tifa had closed the bar and I was just about to leave with Zack. "Now, don't even worry about Zack. He's in good hands. Denzel and Marlene should be old enough to not be corrupted by Yuffie so you don't need to worry about a thing. Just have fun and enjoy your night together."

"Thank you so much, Rayne," Tifa said, hugging me then hugging Zack. "Be good for Aunt Rayne, okay Zack?"

"If anything happens-"

I cut Cloud off. "Nothing will happen," I said firmly. "But just in case, I have both of your numbers." He nodded. I hoisted the tike onto my back and called, "We're off. See you two tomorrow." I carried Zack back to Reno's house, him practically choking me the entire time.

When Reno got home he stared at the child and me sitting on the floor playing in front of the TV. "Welcome home," I chimed.

"Who that?" Zack asked.

"That's Reno," I offered.

"Funny head?"

"Yep, that's funny head." I laughed and turned to Reno. "This is Zack," I offered. He just stared at him. "Reno?"

"What?" He snapped out of it and looked at me.

"You okay?"

"Too much paperwork," he groaned.

I grinned at his expression. "Oh, hey."

"Huh?"

"Are you going to take a shower?" I asked off handedly.

"Yeah…why?"

I grinned sheepishly. "Um…well, I was going to make something to eat so…do you think maybe you could give him a bath before you shower?" He gave me a disbelieving stare. "Please?" I gave him the puppy dog face.

He groaned again. "Fine," he gave in.

I jumped up with a cry of, "Thank you!" I grabbed Zack's clothes and handed them to the small child. "Follow Reno, okay Zack?"

"Kay!" He picked himself off the floor and waddled over to the red head.

I gave Reno a peck on the cheek. "Thank you." I repeated then skipped off to the kitchen. "Now…" I mumbled to myself, "What do I remember how to make?" I dug through the cabinets, finding everything I needed for my favorite dish that Zack could eat on too. I was setting everything on the table when Zack came running into the kitchen, Reno following after with a look of discomfort on his face. "Something wrong?"

"He likes to pull things," he explained.

"What, did he pull on your hair?" I laughed.

"At first. Then he decided the goggles were a more interesting target." I covered my mouth as not to laugh. "It's not funny!" he cried.

"I know," I mumbled, a few giggled escaping. "I know; I'm sorry." I picked Zack up and sat him in my lap. "Don't pull on things that aren't yours," I tried to scold him, but I couldn't keep from smiling.

Reno glared at me and sat across from me, his demeanor changing at the sight of food. "What is this?" he asked curiously.

"Chicken, dumplings, potatoes, and rolls," I explained, smiling. "I'm surprised I got it all done before you finished up."

"Smells good."

"Let's hope it tastes good," I said warily. I was happy to learn that I hadn't lost my touch when it came to cooking. I was even happier to see how much Reno liked it and surprised to see how neatly Zack ate. He hardly made any mess at all.

I let Zack play by himself while I cleaned the kitchen. I returned to the living room to see Reno playing with him. At first I thought Zack was forcing Reno into it, but after a moment of observation, I could tell this wasn't the case. Reno actually looked like he was having fun. Then he got embarrassed when he saw me watching them, and stopped.

Then it was my turn to entertain Zack while Reno watched. We played until Zack looked like he was going to keel over. I set him in his fold up playpen; he fell asleep the second his head hit the pillow.

I smiled and sat beside Reno on the couch. I turned to the red-head. "I thought you didn't like little kids," I said, half teasing, half serious.

He shrugged, watching the little tuff of brown hair roll over. "I make exceptions," he finally said.

"I think you'd be a good father, Reno." The comment came out of nowhere, but I honestly meant it.

"What? Why?" That seemed to disturb him.

"You just seem like you would," I said, shrugging it off. "You can certainly make him happy." I scooted closer to him and leaded against him. "Why? You don't think you would?"

"I dunno." He moved his arm, letting it rest on the back of the couch. It was quiet as we watched the boring movie on the TV screen. "You don't seem so nervous anymore," he commented.

I shrugged. "I'm getting used to being around you, I guess."

"Good," he replied, grinning.

"Why?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"I like being this close to you." He smiled.

"Uh huh." I rolled my eyes and turned back to the TV.

"What?"

"Nothing; I was just thinking how easy it is to please you."

He laughed. "At this point no one else could."

"Why?"

"You're all I want," he replied seriously. He smiled softly, his green eyes glowing.

"Aw, you're so sweet." I laughed, more to myself. "Never thought I'd say that about you, Reno. But you are."

"So you regret moving in with me yet?" he teased.

"Maybe," I joked back. Then I smiled, and added more seriously, "I'm actually really glad I did."

"So am I."

"I know you are, Reno."

"So? Doesn't mean I can't say it," he retorted.

"Hey, Reno?" I called.

"Yeah?"

"Shut up." I sat up and kissed him. He didn't hesitate to kiss me back. His hand slid to the back of my neck, but he still didn't push it farther. I felt my respect for him grow even more. I probably wouldn't have stopped him from deepening the kiss, but he was still taking it slow. For me. I pulled away with a smile.

"What happened to wanting to take it slow?" he asked, humor coloring his tone.

I shrugged then got up and flitted to the bedroom. "I'm going to bed."

"I'm coming," he called. He heaved himself off the couch and followed me shaking his head with a smile.

**Reno POV**

She fell asleep quickly that night, probably because that kid tired her out. Last night she had wrapped herself around my arm, but she didn't do that tonight. Instead- much to my pleasure- she curled up right beside me, resting her head on my chest before drifting off. I was a bit worried she'd try to bite my head off when I had to get up in the morning, but I didn't think about that too much. She looked perfectly at peace, and I found myself staring.

_I'm an idiot if I screw this up,_ I thought. Watching her sleep, stroking her hair out of her face, I knew that I didn't want to lose that. _I've waited too long for this. _And it had been well worth the wait. I wasn't going to jeopardize this- the chance to just lay beside her while she slept- for anything. I was not about to fuck up now.

_**I saw the clouds forming tornadoes in the sky  
The winter winds blew on lake Michigan that night  
I carved your name into my arm  
So I would remember you  
Sometimes it hurts so bad I don't want to know what to say  
Enacting Sybil vane in some tragic way  
So afraid that I can't ever explain**_

_**-'Scream' by Kill Hannah**_


	7. A Problem Arises: Part One

**Chapter Seven – A Problem Arises: Part One**

_**So go on and scream,  
**__**Scream at me, I'm so far away,  
**__**I won't be broken again,  
**__**I've got to breath,  
I can't keep going under!**_

_**-'Going Under' by Evanescence**_

**Reno POV**

It's been about five and a half months since Rayne first took the leap and decided to give me a chance. Whenever I go to work, she ends up going to the Strife's bar and works there until I get home. She's a lot more open about the relationship than she was originally, though we haven't actually gotten down yet. I'm fine with waiting though; her needs are what matters most- my wants can wait until later. But something had been bothering me, and I needed to talk to someone close to her.

"_Hello?"_

"Yo, Strife, you got time?"

"_What do you want, Reno?"_

"I'll come down to the bar; I need to talk. Can you get Rayne out of there?"

The twin sighed. _"Yeah."_ His tone told me that this had better be good, or else. The guy was even threatening me without speaking. Great.

"Thanks," I replied quickly. I hung up and headed towards Seventh Heaven. _Damn, this I going to be awkward,_ I thought on the way there. Tifa directed me upstairs the second I stepped through the door.

Upstairs I found Rayne's twin leaning on the wall with a frown. "What do you need, Reno?" Straight to the point, as always.

I sighed. "I need some help."

"What? Is Rayne too much for you to handle?"

Normally I'd scoff at that, but what I came here to talk about was eating at me too much. "No," I said, shaking my head. "It's just… she's been so distant…" I rubbed the back of my neck, fumbling for words. "I don't know why. I was thinking maybe you might."

He raised an eyebrow at me and demanded, "What did you do?"

"I haven't done anything!" I shot back. "I really have no idea why she's been acting like this."

He shrugged. "She doesn't talk to me about her relationship with you. If you want to know about that I'd try talking to Tifa or Yuffie."

I hung my head, defeated. "I was afraid of that."

He walked down stairs and a few minutes later the nice brunette took his place. "What's up, Reno? Cloud said you need some help?"

"Yeah," I mumbled, stuffing my hands into my pockets and staring at the floor. "Is Rayne mad at me or something?"

"What?"

"She's been acting like she's trying to avoid me," I explained. I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose.

I looked up when Tifa giggled. "You care about her a lot, don't you?" I looked away. "Don't tell her I said anything, but she's having some internal conflict going on."

I turned back to her, instantly worried. "Internal conflict?" I questioned.

She nodded. "See, there's something she's wanting to do but she's not sure if now is the right time to do it."

My heart sank as my worst fears were confirmed. "Shit," I muttered.

"No," the brunette backtracked, holding her hands up and shaking her head. "It's nothing you did," she assured me. "Well, it kind of is, but… never mind. I'm trying to say that your relationship isn't in trouble at all."

"You're sure?"

She nodded. "Don't worry, Reno. Just give her some time to clear her head. I can assure you, she's still crazy about you."

I nodded. Then my cell phone went off. I looked at the ID, and saw _Rude _printed in clear letters. "I gotta go," I said quickly.

"You're supposed to be at work, aren't you?" She smiled knowingly.

"Heh, yeah." I ran down the stairs and out the door. The boss was going to kill me for sure this time.

**Rayne POV**

"What are we doing?!" I yelled again at the ninja that was dragging me down the road.

"Cloud said to get you out of the bar, so I thought we should go on a walk," she explained matter-of-factly.

"This is not a walk," I countered. "This is a hostage situation!" She had literally tied my wrists together had a rope that she was dragging me by. "I demand an explanation!"

"I don't know the details," she said. "Cloud just said to get you out of the bar."

"So you've said," I began. "WHY ARE YOU ALL JUST STARING AT ME?" I shrieked at the staring bystanders. "Why won't any of you help me?!" I had just paused to catch my breath when someone lifted me into the air, causing me to scream in surprise.

"Give her back, Vinny!" Yuffie cried, reaching for me.

_Vinny?_ I felt the rope around my wrists break and I was set on the ground again. I turned around to see my savior, Vincent Valentine. Without thinking I hugged him, and then hid behind him under his cloak when Yuffie made a grab for me. "Don't let her take me," I pleaded.

She stomped her foot at me like a child. "No fair! Using Vinny as a human-ish shield is totally cheating!"

"I have a Vincent and I'm not afraid to use him!" I cried. He raised an eyebrow at me and I just smiled sheepishly. Then I took off as fast as my legs could carry me to the bar, Yuffie in hot pursuit. I burst into the Seventh Heaven and jumped over the bar, hiding between the bottles of shelved liquor and Tifa's legs. "She's trying to kill me!" I whispered.

"Where did she go?" Yuffie screamed as she barreled into the bar.

"Its fine, Yuffie," Cloud said. "Reno left."

"Oh, okay," she replied. She then ran upstairs to entertain the kids.

"Reno was here?" I asked, standing up and beginning to serve drinks on instinct.

"Yes," Tifa chimed. "He's worried about you."

"Tifa," Cloud warned.

"It's okay, Cloud. She needs to know this."

"Needs to know what?" I asked.

"You know how you've been deciding whether or not to… do _that_?" she asked, thankfully sparing me the embarrassment of having Cloud knowing what was going on. I nodded. "Reno's been thinking that you're going to break up with him."

"What?" I cried. "Of course I'm not."

"That's what I told him," she said. "He's just worried. He really does care about you."

"I know," I replied, smiling. "Okay," I said after some thought, "I know what I'm going to do."

"Well?" she prompted.

"I think I am."

"Do I want to know?" Cloud asked.

"Probably not," Tifa and I chimed in unison.

Cloud shrugged. "I'm leaving," he announced.

"Alright; when are you getting back?" Tifa asked.

"In about a week," he replied. Then he left.

"I'm nervous about it though," I said, turning to Tifa. "What if it's too soon?"

"Just let it happen when it happens, okay?" she said. "No need to rip your hair out over it."

"Yeah," I sighed. "Wait, Reno is suppose to be working today, so why was he here?"

"He was that worried, Rayne."

We were both smiling as I said, "I'm going to have to apologize to him."

"He was just happy to hear that you weren't going to break up with him," Tifa laughed. "Have you told him you love him?"

I blushed and nodded.

"Aw!" She hugged me again.

As I pulled away from her embrace, I thought of a wonderful idea. "I'm going to cut out early today, okay? I thought of something I could do for him."

"Oh?" She gave me a sly look.

I returned it. "Wish me luck," I said, then rushed out of the bar and back home.

* * *

"Okay, everything looks just right. Now the-" I stopped as the sound of a car door closing made my heart nearly stop. "Shit," I mumbled. "Music," I finished from my previous statement. I turned on the CD Yuffie made me about a month ago and ran to the bed room and closed the door. "And now we play the waiting game."

**Reno POV**

Work sucked; I had a shit load of paperwork lopped on me for slipping away. Not to mention that I got my ass reamed for it. I sighed. Today just sucked. I went to unlock the door when I saw a note taped to it.

"**Welcome Home." **

I pulled the note off the door and walked inside, staring at it in confusion. I was surprised when I opened the door to see fake rose petals on the floor. I looked up to find there was a trail of notes strung from the ceiling. The roses and the notes both led to the bedroom. _This is so corny_, I thought, highly amused. I decided to read the notes. The first one read: Make no comments on how old fashioned and lame this is.

I laughed and moved on to the next one. "**I'm sure work was hell after you got caught skipping out on it**." I swallowed hard. _So she found out_. I continued. "**So I decided to do something to help you relax.**" The next one: "**And to let you know you didn't do anything to upset me or make me mad.**" The last one was taped to the door and said: "**And to remind you that I love you.**"

I opened the door and my jaw dropped. There were candles lit everywhere, the fake petals where now real petals, and Rayne sat on top of the bed in some silk dress that slit up the side all the way to the top of her thigh, had a sharp V neck line, and hugged her body.

"Welcome home," she purred.

**Rayne POV**

I was happy to see that my little idea had such a strong effect on him. Or maybe that look was just because of my dress. I mentally shrugged. Reno just stood in the doorway with his mouth open, so I decided to help him. I stood up, walked over to him, and pulled him into the room and shut the door. I then turned and pulled his coat off.

"Hard day at work?" I asked casually.

"Yeah," he answered distractedly. "What-"

I cut him off. "I thought so." I was hoping that I looked calmer than I felt, because I felt like my heart was going to break through my rib cage and splatter on the ground any minute. I pulled him over to the bed.

"What is this?" he asked, sounding rather bewildered.

"Well…" I crossed my arms. "I was thinking I was going to give you one of those sensual massages, but if you don't want-"

"No, it's not that," he cut in quickly. "It's just…" He thought for a moment, then continued, "You don't have to do this."

I smiled, and asked innocently, "Do you really think I'd be doing this if I didn't want to?"

He grinned. "Guess not."

"Exactly. Now take off your shirt." I climbed back onto the bed while he did as ordered. He lay down and I crawled on top of him and began to work the muscles in his back, attempting to ignore the way my cheeks were turning red at our current position. While we had gotten somewhat physical in the past, this was still kinda awkward for me

"What made you want to do this?" he asked a moment later.

"Tifa told me you were worried about me and you thought I was going to break up with you." I smiled though he couldn't see it. "I just wanted to do something nice for you. I don't want you to worry yourself about things like that. I feel like I'm in too deep with you right now; if I tried to go it alone I don't think I'd be able to handle it without you." He nodded. "You know, I'm glad you stole my underwear and got me to go on that date with you. I never would have realized what a catch you are if you hadn't." He didn't say anything, so I asked, "You're not falling asleep on me are you?"

"No," he sighed, but I could tell he was getting sleepy. "You could make money doing this."

"Oh?" I laughed. "What kind of payment are you talking about, hm?"

He chuckled. "Careful what you say, Rayne."

"Why? I'm the one in control right now."

"Exactly. I'm not sure if I can control myself. I wanted to jump you the second I saw you."

I blushed. "Oh?" Then, gathering my courage, I leaned down and whispered in his ear, "Is that so?"

"Yeah," he replied, voice strained. "But the thing is, you think I'm kidding."

"Who said that?" I asked. I felt him tense up when I gently kissed his neck. "Maybe I'm trying to provoke you, hm?"

I jumped when he rolled under me and grabbed my hips. He had a serious look on his face, and his voice held a clear warning in it. "Don't tease me, Rayne."

"Who's teasing?" I asked, equally serious as I stared down into his smoldering emerald eyes.

He stared at me for a long time, trying to find any hint of doubt. "You're sure about this?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I've been fighting with myself for weeks trying to figure out if I really wanted to go through with this or not. I've decided that you obviously want something more than just sex or else you wouldn't put up with me for as long as you have." I took a deep breath and continued, "And I really do love you. I want to do this."

"I…" he began. "I want more than anything to not mess up with you."

"I know," I began, but he cut me off.

"I love you, Rayne." His voice was barely above a whisper. I froze.

When I finally managed to find my voice, I said, "Then that only proves that this is the right choice." I leaned down and captured his lips with my own and his hand immediately traveled to the back of my neck. Our tongues danced together rather than fight for dominance like usual. I pulled the goggles off his head and let them fall to the floor, "You won't need those."

Reno grinned and I yelped slightly when he flipped me over. There was a hand on either side of my head and he stared down at me. "You're not going to regret this?"

I gave him a blank look and said, "I'll rip those pants off if I have to." He smiled and met my lips again.

_**Pretty girl, when you're tossed you turn.  
And all I needed was a way to learn, one day at a time.  
You wanted years you could later recall.  
You shake and tremble with the aftershock, one day at a time.  
What's left of a prize possession, we'll cash out in another dimension  
only banking on the world, still spinning high  
in the palm of my hand.**_

_**-'Miracle Man' by Capital Lights**_


End file.
